Threats To Sea Turtles Abound

December 15, 1985

The future of sea turtles in Florida may be in the hands of politicians, whose decisions on coastal construction will affect the creatures' ability to nest, and fishermen, whose trawler nets can kill the reptiles.

Sea turtles, which range in weight from 77 to 1,300 pounds, flock to state beaches on spring and summer nights to lay eggs. But today the turtles must contend with highrise condominiums springing up along the coast. With the construction come sea walls that experts say contribute to beach erosion and create nesting barriers; more people whose activity may interfere with nesting; and beachfront lights that lure hatchlings away from the sea, exhausting them and too often leading them into the path of automobiles.

Of the five varieties of turtles with state and federal protection, two are abundant in Florida's waters and on its beaches: the loggerhead and the green turtle. The state's Atlantic beaches, particularly those in south Brevard County, make Florida the second-largest nesting area in the world for the loggerhead.

Aerial beach surveys found 40,000 to 60,000 loggerhead nests on Florida beaches in 1983, probably made by about 12,500 turtles, said Earl Possardt, Southeast regional sea turtle coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. He said the exact number of sea turtles in the Florida area is unknown.

Sea turtles always have had to contend with natural problems, most notably wildlife such as raccoons eating eggs and hatchlings. But the movement of man into the area put the animals in increased jeopardy. Many people eat turtle eggs, and the creatures have been overhunted for meat, leather and shells that are used for jewelry.

Commercial fishing has created a hazard for the turtles, which often get tangled in nets and suffocate. According to federal statistics, 7,154 turtles -- of which 6,036 were loggerheads -- were killed from 1980 through 1984 off the Atlantic and Gulf coast states, and officials believe many of those deaths are caused by shrimp and fish nets.

The National Marine Fisheries Service has developed a ''trawling efficiency device'' for shrimp trawlers that would not entangle turtles and would even improve the shrimp catch. However, the devices are not required and only 200 to 300 of the estimated 6,000 shrimp boats in Southeast waters use them, said Charles Oravetz of the fisheries service.

Possardt said he is optimistic about the turtles' future in Florida if the problems of fishing nets and of development's effect on nesting areas can be resolved. He also is encouraged that many important nesting sites in Florida are publicly owned.

The Brevard County Commission this year adopted an ordinance curtailing the use of beachfront lighting on coastal structures in unincorporated areas during the turtle nesting and hatching period, which is May 31 to Oct. 31. Turtle advocates hope the ordinance will be a model for other communities.

Lew Ehrhart, a sea turtle researcher at the University of Central Florida, said beach erosion -- and the structures people create to control it -- will be the next major problem for Florida sea turtles. The creatures may be the losers in the coming political war over protection of beachfront property from erosion, Ehrhart said.

Although the public voices sympathy for the sea turtles' plight, Ehrhart sees it as superficial.

''They talk a good game. They're concerned about one nest. But try to get them to write to their county commissioners and legislators about lighting, which kills thousands of hatchlings in one night,'' Ehrhart said. ''There are not enough people serious enough about it to do something about the serious long-term problems. Beachfront owners are turtle advocates until erosion affects their property.''